Brazos County ( ) is a

county A county () is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesL. Brookes (ed.) '' Chambers Dictionary''. Edinburgh: Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, 2005. in some nations. The term is derived from the Old French denoti ...

in the U.S. state of

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

. As of the 2020 census, its population was 233,849. The

county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or parish (administrative division), civil parish. The term is in use in five countries: Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, and the United States. An equiva ...

is Bryan. Along with Brazoria County, the county is named for the Brazos River, which forms its western border. The county was formed in 1841 and organized in 1843. Brazos County is part of the Bryan-College Station Metropolitan Statistical Area, which consists of Bryan, College Station, and smaller cities and towns in Brazos, Burleson, and Robertson counties.

History

In 1837, most of the area of present-day Brazos County was included in Washington County. The Brazos River, which bisected the latter, proved a serious obstacle to county government, and a new county, Navasota, was formed in January 1841. The first court, with Judge R. E. B. Baylor presiding, was held later that year in the home of Joseph Ferguson, fourteen miles west of the site of present Bryan. The county seat, named Boonville for Mordecai Boon, was located on John Austin's league and was surveyed by Hiram Hanover in 1841. In January of the following year Navasota County was renamed Brazos County. Originally one of the state's poorer counties, the county donated 2,416 acres of land in the 1870s to create

Texas A&M University Texas A&M University (Texas A&M, A&M, TA&M, or TAMU) is a public university, public, Land-grant university, land-grant, research university in College Station, Texas, United States. It was founded in 1876 and became the flagship institution of ...

, which has enabled the county to be among the state's most financially successful. After the

Civil War A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same Sovereign state, state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies.J ...

tens of thousands of new residents moved to Brazos County, attracted by its good lands, with plenty of

timber Lumber is wood that has been processed into uniform and useful sizes (dimensional lumber), including beams and planks or boards. Lumber is mainly used for construction framing, as well as finishing (floors, wall panels, window frames). ...

and a patchwork of

prairie Prairies are ecosystems considered part of the temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands biome by ecologists, based on similar temperate climates, moderate rainfall, and a composition of grasses, herbs, and shrubs, rather than trees, as the ...

s and fertile floodplains. As newcomers poured in by the thousands the county suffered from arson, feuding, shooting and racial violence, including mob lynchings.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (1.0%) is water.

Adjacent counties

* Robertson County (northwest) * Leon County (north) * Madison County (northeast) * Grimes County (east) * Washington County (south) * Burleson County (southwest) The northwestern boundary follows the Old Spanish Trail.

Demographics

2020 census

2000 census

As of the

census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...

of 2000, there were 152,415 people, 55,202 households, and 30,416 families residing in the county. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: Standing stock (disambiguation), standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geog ...

was . There were 59,023 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 74.45%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...

, 10.72%

Black Black is a color that results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without chroma, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness.Eva Heller, ''P ...

African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...

, 0.36% Native American, 4.01% Asian, 0.07%

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, Pacificans, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe th ...

, 8.42% from other races, and 1.97% from two or more races. 17.88% of the population were

Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...

or Latino of any race. 15.3% were of German, 8.4% English, 7.3% Irish and 7.2% American ancestry according to Census 2000. There were 55,202 households, out of which 27.90% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 41.30% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...

living together, 10.00% had a female householder with no husband present, and 44.90% were non-families. 25.50% of all households were made up of individuals, and 5.00% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.52 and the average family size was 3.16. In the county, the population was spread out, with 21.50% under the age of 18, 32.00% from 18 to 24, 26.00% from 25 to 44, 13.80% from 45 to 64, and 6.70% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 24 years. For every 100 females, there were 102.10 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 100.30 males. The median income for a household in the county was $29,104, and the median income for a family was $46,530. Males had a median income of $32,864 versus $24,179 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...

for the county was $16,212. About 14.00% of families and 26.90% of the population were below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line, or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for ...

, including 21.60% of those under age 18 and 10.30% of those age 65 or over.

Transportation

Public Transportation

The Brazos Transit District operates a fixed route bus service and

paratransit Paratransit (also community transport in the United Kingdom, or intermediate public transport) is a type of public transport service that supplements fixed-route mass transit by providing individualized rides without fixed routes or timetables. P ...

throughout Bryan and College Station.

Major highways

* U.S. Highway 190 * State Highway 6 * State Highway 21 * State Highway 30 * State Highway 40 * State Highway 47 * State Highway 249 a.k.a. Aggie Expressway (Under Construction) * State Highway OSR * Farm to Market Road 60 * Farm to Market Road 2154 * Farm to Market Road 2347 * Farm to Market Road 2818

Airport

Easterwood Airport, owned by Texas A&M, is the local commercial airport, with flights to Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport. Coulter Field is in Bryan.

Politics

Unlike most counties that are home to a large university, Brazos County is a Republican stronghold. The county votes to the right of Texas as a whole, which is also a Republican stronghold. No Democratic presidential nominee has carried it since Texas native

Lyndon Johnson Lyndon Baines Johnson (; August 27, 1908January 22, 1973), also known as LBJ, was the 36th president of the United States, serving from 1963 to 1969. He became president after assassination of John F. Kennedy, the assassination of John F. Ken ...

in his 1964 landslide. Only in 1968 and 2020 have Democrats received even 40% of the vote. Even

Jimmy Carter James Earl Carter Jr. (October 1, 1924December 29, 2024) was an American politician and humanitarian who served as the 39th president of the United States from 1977 to 1981. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party ...

failed to win 40% of the vote in 1976, despite being the last Democrat to win Texas. In 2020,

Joe Biden Joseph Robinette Biden Jr. (born November 20, 1942) is an American politician who was the 46th president of the United States from 2021 to 2025. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he served as the 47th vice p ...

was the first Democrat to win over 40% of its vote since 1968, winning 41.43% of the vote. This was still well to the right of the state as a whole, as Biden lost the state 46.48-52.06%.

Communities

Cities

* Bryan (county seat) * College Station * Navasota (partial) * Wixon Valley

Towns

* Kurten

Census-designated place

* Lake Bryan

Unincorporated communities

* Allenfarm * Cawthon * Edge * Fairview * Harvey * Millican - Former municipality * Mooring * Mudville * Nelleva * Peach Creek * Smetana * Tabor * Wellborn

Ghost Towns

* Boonville * Cottonwood * Dallam * Dinkins * Enright * Macey * Moore * Reliance * Sims * Stone City * Union * Varisco *

Wicker Wicker is a method of weaving used to make products such as furniture and baskets, as well as a descriptor to classify such products. It is the oldest furniture making method known to history, dating as far back as . Wicker was first documented ...

* Zack

Education

School districts:
Text list
/ref> * Bryan Independent School District * College Station Independent School District * Navasota Independent School District Blinn College is the designated community college for all of the county.

, the largest university by enrollment in Texas, is located in College Station.